Financial freedom by Obafemi

Financial freedom by Obafemi - September 2019 Scholarship Essay

When I was younger, my classmates would spend their free time playing Minecraft and watching Spongebob. I was the weird kid in the corner googling the corporate structure of Berkshire Hathaway, finding out what gave their stock price its value, I knew business was my calling. In high school, I fell in love with the stock market and began to fall in love with many elite investors. The idea of being able to multiply your money long term by being patient and analyzing trends in the market was fascinating to me.
More recently, I noticed a huge problem in the world: people make money but they have no idea what to do with it. Financial illiteracy is widespread, trapping millions of families each year into the treacherous cycle of poverty. The lack of financial literacy can even be seen with my peers at school: very few people know how to budget their spending, let alone how to invest their money. This lack of basic knowledge could irreparably damage their future financial stability horrifies me. I am currently taking action upon myself to do something about this, I am working to start a club at my school called “3wallstreet.” The goal is to enable my peers to reach financial freedom one day by teaching them the necessary skills. I will lead seminar and discussion-based club meetings and occasionally, we will have teachers come in as guest speakers. Teachers give stories about their own financial decisions, good and bad, so that when students are in similar situations, we will have a better idea of what to do. I hope to continue this club at the university I attend , especially given how many students take out loans with high interest rates to pay for college nowadays. Being financially literate is something that can completely alter the quality and outcome of one’s life. Because while money can’t buy happiness, living paycheck to paycheck is not ideal either. Financial education can be passed from generation to generation and is essential knowledge to have a grasp on, especially in today's day and age.